reported. "The fight arose out of some discussion over the sale of stocks." Farmers and Merchants Bank Ozro Childs invested, largely in land and commercial enterprises, often with Isaias W. Hellman as a partner. Their most significant and long-term success was the Farmers and Merchants Bank of Los Angeles, which included some of the town's most prominent citizens as additional investors. Their conservative lending practices allowed the bank to endure every panic and depression. The Farmers and Merchants Bank was bought by Security Pacific in 1956, and after various mergers it is now within Bank of America. University of Southern California Childs was involved in philanthropic work. When Judge Robert Maclay Widney sought to create a university in Los Angeles in the 1870s, he received assistance from donors including Childs. In 1879, Childs contributed a considerable amount of land to the founding of the University of Southern California, which opened in 1880. He died at his Los Angeles Main Street home in 1890, leaving six living children (out of ten) and a widow who survived him by over 40 years. Los Angeles Common Council Childs was elected to the Los Angeles Common Council, the governing body of the city, on December 6, 1869, and resigned on January 13, 1870. References American bankers American gardeners American horticulturists American merchants 1824 births 1890 deaths American financial company founders Businesspeople from Los Angeles Farmers and Merchants Bank of Los Angeles people Los Angeles Common Council (1850–1889) members 19th-century American politicians University of Southern California people People from Caledonia County, Vermont American Protestants History of Los Angeles 19th-century American businesspeople 19th century in Los Angeles